In December 2010, the remains of four female sex workers known as "The Gilgo Four" were discovered near Gilgo Beach on the South Shore of Long Island, New York. Rex Heuermann was charged with the murders of three of the four women, Megan Waterman, Melissa Barthelemy, and Amber Costello in July 2023. He is a suspect in the murder of the fourth woman, Maureen Brainard-Barne, and authorities believe he will eventually be charged with her murder as well.
Heuermann’s family was completely blindsided by the news of their loved ones' arrest. Heuermann is a father of two. His wife, Asa Ellerup, filed for divorce one week after his arrest. On Friday July 28, 2023, she spoke out for the first time about this ordeal through a press release issued by her legal team.
Ellerup is being represented by lawyer Bob Macedonio. She stated that her family is “enduring a profound and indescribable catastrophe." She begs for privacy and space to be able to heal. She also wants the public to leave her neighborhood alone as it has been overrun with the ongoing investigation.
"On behalf of my family and especially my elderly neighbors, who have also had their lives turned upside down by the enormous police presence, in addition to the spectators, and news crews,” the statement explained. “They deserve to live peacefully; they should be able to walk their dogs and go to the grocery stores without cameras shoved in their faces. I am pleading with you all to give us space so that we may regain some normalcy in our neighborhood.”
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Ellerup and her family were informed of Heuermann’s arrest in Manhattan one hour after it occurred. "They were home and the cops came in, and they were completely blindsided, and they told them what was going on," Macedonio explained. "Her and her children's lives have been completely turned upside-down.” The family is not believed to have any prior knowledge of Heuermann’s alleged crimes and are cooperating fully with the investigation.
